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Community demands rescission of nonrenewals for several queer and nonbinary educators; more than 40 speak
Summary
Dozens of students, teachers, parents and union representatives urged the board to rescind recent nonrenewal notices issued to multiple educators (several speakers named Brandy Tucker, Sam Wallace and Em/Em Schluter). Speakers cited staffing shortages and harm to students who lack representation and role models.
More than 40 community members—students, teachers, parents, library staff, union leaders and elected officials—took three minutes each during the Providence School Board’s public comment period to oppose recent nonrenewal notices issued to multiple educators and to press for transparency and reversal.
Students from Arise and the Providence Youth Student Movement delivered joint statements calling for the district to reinstate three nonbinary educators and to provide clearer information about the process behind nonrenewals. “Our demands for more transparency within the district have yet to be answered,” said Juliana Espinal, who urged the board to consider the impact on teacher retention and student support.
Several speakers named the educators affected and described their classroom work and ties to students. Brandy Tucker, who identified herself as a fifth‑grade ESL teacher at Webster Avenue Elementary and as nonbinary, testified about a meeting of nonrenewed teachers and said the group included special educators, math teachers and librarians—roles the district has struggled to fill. “There are 17 total (nonrenewals), nine of us present; five of the nine are queer,” she said, calling the pattern “statistically astronomical” and urging an explanation.
Sam Wallace, the Del Sesto school librarian, told the board the library had been renovated and run for two years under difficult circumstances and expressed alarm that the district seeks “a more qualified teacher” while many positions remain vacant. Students and colleagues described Wallace and other nonrenewed educators as central to school life and urged the board to rescind the notices.
Union representatives and community organizations echoed calls for rescission and for the district to publish accessible, translated resources about protections for immigrant and LGBTQIA+ students. State Representative David Morales urged the superintendent to review the nonrenewal letters and to consider the effect of staffing losses on students’ learning conditions.
District leaders told the public they take the concerns seriously and will confer with board members; the board said members would speak among themselves and follow up with the community.
